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ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne

With the shortest day of the year now behind us we are excited to release the Preliminary Event Schedule for the December 2015 event.

This Preliminary Race Schedule is a guide to assist competitors in making plans for this year’s event. This Preliminary Race Schedule does not change the formal details that will be released in the upcoming Notice of Race(s) and we plan to open entries and publish of the Invited Classes Notice of Race on the 15th July as well as provide more details regarding the ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne Olympic / Paralympic classes.

With the exciting move to our new home at the St Kilda Sailing Precinct, there have been a number of fantastic opportunities open up for the event and showcasing sailing to the wider public and we look forward to sharing these with you all throughout the year. One of the first of these being an accommodation partnership that we hope to offer sailors at the same time as opening entries.

Be sure to keep up with more details, announcements and offers by subscribing to the Event Newsletter below or following us on Facebook.

2015 ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne, will see the cream rise to the top when Olympic aspirants set out to earn valuable qualifying points on the next step in their quest to compete for their country at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.

The first regatta of the 2015-16 ISAF Sailing World Cup runs from December 7-13, and will take place at its new home, the St Kilda Sailing Precinct, located on St Kilda’s bustling foreshore.

Hon. John Eren, Minister for Tourism and Major Events says: “The Andrews Labor Government is proud to welcome the ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne to its exciting and dynamic new Southern Hemisphere venue on the St Kilda foreshore.

St Kilda attracts visitors from around the world, keen to soak up the atmosphere of cafes, restaurants, beaches, live music venues, art and shopping – the precinct delivers it all. Events of this calibre continue to place Victoria on the world stage as a leading international sailing destination and Victoria as Australia’s sporting capital.”

Event Chairman: Mark Klemens says: “The Sailing World Cup Melbourne is the ultimate off-the-beach sailing event on the Australian calendar and with the Olympics almost upon us, it will no doubt attract the very best sailors in the world. Our new home in St Kilda, a picturesque entertainment hub of Melbourne, will significantly increase public participation and enjoyment of this special event, and create a genuine carnival atmosphere. Sailing has never been more exciting and I am delighted and proud to contribute to its future here in Australia. I encourage everyone to “get on board“.

Event Director: Mark Turnbull OAM says: “We are very excited about the move to St Kilda and look forward to showcasing our fantastic Olympic sport and great athletes to the wider public. We are planning many changes to this year’s Event to make it more approachable and understandable to the public, and exciting for the sailors, whether they be our current Olympic heroes from London 2012, or the next generation of young sailors racing in the Youth and Invited Classes regatta alongside their heroes.

“Now in its seventh year, the ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne is well established as a world-class fixture in Victoria’s summer of sailing. Showcasing the best of the best on Melbourne’s Port Phillip Bay, the ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne, is the premier annual event for Olympic Class sailing in the Southern Hemisphere.”

Join the Victorian Yachting community in coming together to celebrate our country’s ongoing sailing success on local and international stages, at the ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne Dinner.

When did boats start to fly?

Featuring a special panel on foiling, the future of sailing and more, this is the best night on the Victorian Sailing calendar, and is an opportunity to simply celebrate sailing.
Enjoy pre-dinner drinks and canapés on the balcony before a delicious sit-down meal in the stylish surroundings of Sandringham Yacht Club in a celebration of our sailing champions.

Date: Tuesday 9th DecemberTime: 6.30pm until approx. 11pmCost: $135 p/person or $1300 for a table of 10.Venue: Port Phillip Room, Sandringham Yacht ClubAddress: Jetty Rd, Sandringham 3191Dress Code: After Five CocktailClick here to book tickets, if you have any questions or concerns please contact Bianca Johnston on 0438 372 168 or email bianca@newtack.com.au.

Running parallel to the Olympic and Paralympic class competitions at this year’s ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne, is a racing program for 16 invited classes from kiteboards, to various youth feeder classes and the universally designed; Hansa Liberty class.

The Invited Class program has again proven very popular, with the first official entry for this year’s Melbourne event being received from UK based Hansa Liberty sailor, Tom Harper.

Harper says he’s slightly embarrassed that his was the cup’s first entry, “my reputation for leaving everything to the last minute is in tatters.”

Harper is Melbourne-bound for his first International Association for Disabled Sailing (IFDS) event, mainly because it is one of the few high profile regattas to include the Liberty class. “This is a great decision as the Liberty is pretty unique in its ability to allow for any level of physical disability,” he says.

An accident in 2002 left Harper paralyzed from the shoulders down and changed his life forever. Gone were all the things he loved the most in the world; surfing, snowboarding and cycling. A long period of depression shadowed the Englishman who lives live near Poole in Dorset, in between the main sailing spots on the south coast, The Solent, Weymouth and Portland.

In 2008 he came across sailing for the disabled, discovering it could offer the independence and competitive fulfilment he was craving. “Sailing has definitely developed my confidence and allowed me to feel part of a sport as a full participant. It is the only sport which completely levels the playing field and does not distinguish between able-bodied and disabled.

“I feel proud to be a disabled athlete and the challenge that sailing gives me has given my life focus and meaning. I also have two young children and the ability to do something active as a family is a fantastic proposition for the future.”

Each time Harper leaves the pontoon is a sparkle moment. “To set off with complete independence is totally liberating, and that feeling hasn’t diminished with time. Every time I get in my boat I feel elated to be doing something on my own, without the barriers of my life on land.”

Harper’s career highlights so far including winning a national series in 2012 in the Servo class. His main focus for next year is the Hansa European Championships in the UK and he’s working on developing a new class, “I’ve been involved with the design of RS Sailing’s new Venture Keel and will be developing it as a more integrated solution for disabled sailors.”

It is expected that the number of entries in the Paralympic classes will again continue to grow on previous years, given the announcement that in the week preceding the 2015 ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne, the Royal Yacht Club of Victoria will host the 2015 IFDS World Championships (November 26 – December 3, 2015). Therefore many competitors have expressed their interest to use the 2014 event to gain further exposure to the sailing grounds of Port Phillip.

As a commitment to supporting the growth of the IFDS classes in the region, the event will again be offering onsite IFDS Functional Classification at the 2014 ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne.

The Melbourne leg of the Sailing World Cup, is the second regatta in the six event circuit that begins in Qingdao, China before heading to Miami, USA, Hyeres, France, Weymouth & Portland, Great Britain and finishes with the series Grand Final event to be held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

The invited classes will complete a single four or five day series between Sunday December 7 and Sunday December 14, 2014.
The program for the ten Olympic classes is a six-day opening series culminating in the weekend medal stage, December 13-14, for the top ten teams or individuals.

The Australian Sailing Team (AST) and Squad (ASS) commenced their run to Rio at the Santander 2014 ISAF Sailing World Championships in Spain on Friday September 12, 2014. Both teams are in full force with 27 crews entered in nine out of the ten Olympic classes. Santander 2014 is the first Rio 2016 Olympic Sailing competition qualification regatta with 50% of places awarded based on results in the Spanish city.

Entries for the ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne must be received no later than midnight on October 1, 2014 to qualify for the early entry discount. Midnight on December 2 is the final deadline for entry submission.

The Australian Sailing Team and Australian Sailing Squad’s en masse entry for the ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne, December 7-14, 2014, raises the competition bar among the Olympic classes and gives aspiring sailors the chance to challenge their heroes.

Yachting Australia has entered the full contingent of the AST and ASS, showing their support for the event and giving other competitors a rare opportunity to mix it up on the racetrack with world champions and gold medallists from the last Games.

The Olympic circuit is really starting to heat up with Sandringham Yacht Club staging the Melbourne event off the back of a number of other Olympic class events, including the Santander 2014 ISAF Sailing World Championship in Spain from September 8-21, 2014. Santander is the first Olympic qualification regatta for Rio 2016 and half of the spots for Rio will be decided at the championship. The Australian Sailing Team and Squad will be there in full force.

On his preparation for next month’s Spanish world championship, Queensland based Finn sailor and ASS member Jake Lilley says emphatically “There will be no stone left unturned; no weight left un-lifted, and no wave left un-navigated. For 2014 there is only ONE goal, and that is to qualify for the Rio 2016 Olympics.”

One of Lilley’s stepping stones in his quest to replicate Laser gold medallist Tom Slingsby’s world-beating performance at the last Olympic Games, and break a 40-year medal drought in the Finn class, is the ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne in December.

AST 470 sailor Sarah Cook encourages international sailors to come to Melbourne in December and pit themselves against Australia’s best. “It’s the best time of year for Europeans to come and race in the beautiful Southern Hemisphere summer and escape the cold, long winter. We love coming home to Melbourne and sailing on Port Philip. Sail Melbourne is a great regatta, Melbourne is an awesome city and the event will have Australia’s best sailors competing on home grounds.”

Performance director of the AST Peter Conde adds, “ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne is a fixture on our AST’s international racing calendar and we’re looking forward to another great ISAF World Sailing event in Melbourne.

“Having the AST and Squad with several Olympic champions and medallists at the ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne means the regatta will offer the best world sailing has to offer. Melbourne traditionally offers great training and racing conditions and excellent race management.”

The AST came away with plenty of top shelf finishes at the most recent Rio Olympic Test event, Aquece Rio – International Regatta 2014, earlier this month. Highest rankings included Mat Belcher and Will Ryan first in the 470s, Tom Burton first in the Laser fleet, Nathan Outteridge and Iain Jensen second in the 49er and Darren Bundock and Nina Curtis runners-up in the Nacra17.
The full suite of ISAF Sailing World Cup Classes (470 Men’s, 470 Women’s, 49er, 49FX, Finn, Laser, Laser Radial, Nacra 17, RS:X Men, RS:X Women, 2.4mR, SKUD18, Sonar, Kiteboard Men and Kiteboard Women), will again be contested from the world acclaimed Sandringham Yacht Club in Melbourne Australia, from December 7-14, 2014.

Alongside the ISAF Sailing World Cup fleets, the event will again be racing a selection of youth and Olympic feeder classes, through an extensive Invited Classes program, including; FX (open), Laser 4.7, Laser Radial (men), Liberty, Optimist, 420, 29er, OK, Viper, 505, Minnows, Bic Techno 293 and International Cadets.
Last year’s ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne, staged for the fifth time by the organising authority Yachting Victoria in partnership with event management company New Tack, drew 703 registered participants, 53% of those travelled from interstate and overseas.

During Melbourne’s summer months cooling afternoon breezes from the north to north-west provide consistent racing conditions on the eastern Port Phillip rim interspersed with the occasional summer scorcher followed by a cooler southerly change.

The event is offering a 25% discount on entry fees for all entries received before October 1, 2014. Head to the event website to take advantage of this offer.

Whilst the ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne is still several months away, it’s time to start planning your trip to Melbourne!

You may well be in the process of booking your flights, accommodation and thinking about the logistics of getting your boat to and from the event. This where the ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne can help make life easier for you. To assist you in planning the upcoming regatta season, we have released a preliminary Race Schedule for the ISAF Sailing World Cup – Melbourne. The preliminary race schedule is intended as a guide to assist you in making those vital plans such as flights and accommodation for this year’s event. It is not to be confused with theNotice of Race – which is due to be released in the coming month. For more information, visit the event website www.sailingworldcupmelbourne.com.au.